Balfour Beatty acquires RT Dooley

Balfour Beatty Construction U.S. has acquired RT Dooley Construction Co. of Charlotte for an undisclosed sum.

Balfour Beatty Construction U.S. is a division of U.K.-based Balfour Beatty plc, a construction, engineering and investment services business with annual revenue of more than $14 billion. The company’s Charlotte-based southeast division has a strong presence in military housing, education and other public-sector markets.

RT Dooley is a family-owned firm that recorded revenue of $306 million last year. It specializes in building corporate headquarters, business interiors and infrastructure.

RT Dooley is now part of Balfour Beatty’s southeast division, which is headed by Robert Hambright.

Because of the complementary nature of the companies’ businesses, no staff cuts are planned. RT Dooley will remain at its current location, operating under its own leadership team with relative autonomy.

The two firms say the combination will create a single source for clients’ needs.

“We are thrilled about the opportunities that joining with Balfour Beatty will create for our clients as well as RT Dooley’s employees,” says David Dooley, chief executive at RT Dooley. “This is a unique strategic partnership that enables us to scale up quickly in order to serve the increasingly global needs of our clients, while allowing us to retain and enhance the RT Dooley brand and the relentless focus on customers that has been our hallmark for more than three decades.”

Balfour Beatty Construction U.S. was formed from its parent’s acquisition of the commercial construction unit of Centex Corp. for $367 million in 2007. It’s the 25th-largest domestic contractor in the country and posted revenue of $2.4 billion last year. Balfour Beatty plc entered the U.S. market in 1986 through its acquisition of Heery International Inc.